


Adopting

by StevetheIcecube



Series: LeoNiles Week [3]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Babies, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-29
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-07-04 03:27:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15832824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StevetheIcecube/pseuds/StevetheIcecube
Summary: Niles brings home something completely unexpected.





	Adopting

**Author's Note:**

> I'm four days behind on Leoniles week rip. This is for day three - unawares.

Okay, Leo would admit it; he was surprised. But of course he was surprised. Niles was a very inwards person. He tended to push people away if he didn't know them, and if he was comfortable with them he was usually quiet in comparison. Not speaking was one form of kindness for him, a way of showing that his shields were down.

So this? This was something very, very new. Niles was...he'd brought...

"She's about three months old," he said. Leo blinked again at the baby in Niles' arms. A baby. Why had he brought a baby back? How had he even managed to get her into the castle without anyone seeing? As if on cue, the baby made a cooing noise.

"I- why did you bring a baby back? Where did you even find her?" He couldn't stop staring at the baby. Why in the name of the gods had Niles brought a baby back? He just couldn't get his head around it.

"A lady gave me a baby and asked me to hold her," Niles said. "And then she left to go 'to the market'." There, his voice was dripping with sarcasm, and Leo understood exactly what had happened there. "And then she didn't return. There was no one to give her to or anything, so I brought her back."

"You brought an abandoned baby back to the largest fortress in Nohr," Leo said, still definitely in disbelief. "And she's- how do you know how old she is?"

"Street smarts, milord," Niles said with a knowing grin. They were both still looking at the baby. "Lots of kids on the streets. Lots of women saddled with a child they can't look after. A fair few more with ones they just don't want."

So Niles, with his so often hidden bleeding heart, had taken in a baby off the streets without hesitating. Of course he had. "Does she have a name?" Leo asked. Asking whether the girl would be staying would have to come later. That was a tricky question and Leo needed to think of what he'd say depending on Niles' answer.

"I don't know," he said, and then he smiled. "Why don't you give her a name, milord?"

Leo frowned. In ways, he didn't want to get himself directly involved in this. Being in a relationship with Niles was one thing that he probably shouldn't do for the sake of his reputation. But naming an abandoned child that said boyfriend brought back to the castle without asking anyone? "I'm no good with names," he said.

Niles just laughed. "Name the baby, Leo."

"Fine!" He threw up his hands and looked closely at the child again. She'd shifted, turning her head towards him. Her eyes were bright blue, like most babies, and she looked...startlingly similar to Niles, honestly. But maybe he was imagining that. "Nina?"

"Nina it is," Niles said, moving the baby around a little. "Gods, my arms hurt. Well, I'm going to get her settled. An extra pair of hands would be wonderful if I'm not tearing you away from anything important."

"You're- keeping her?" He asked. Getting Nina 'settled in' sounded an awful lot like Niles wanted to look after her himself. This day just kept getting more and more strange. He had no idea Niles had a soft spot for babies.

"Unless you have any objections?" Niles asked, fixing Leo with a very insistent gaze. Damn it.

"Sure," he said with a small sigh. "You can keep the baby."


End file.
